Curses
by Tales of the Scarlet Sisters
Summary: A short and sweet one-shot in the world of Gensokyo, wherein everything is quite modern and youkai have remained just old legend. A young adult by the name of Sakuya Izayoi is assigned her very first job to a pair of sisters, children of the wealthy Scarlet family. But with rumors of the Scarlet's devilish ways, just how will this new caretaking assignment truly fare for her?
Hello, everyone! You know, a strange impulse came over me to write this. It's probably the shortest thing I've ever written and finished. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

Being raised under a family whose business were the serving of others never came as easy. When you told people they would almost feel sorry for you as if it were such a pitiable career. But it was a family tradition, the Izayois were known to serve their clients so well that it only seemed deserving of the highly prestigious. Their youngest, Sakuya Izayoi, had become of age to serve. In her adulthood she were to be a maid and caretaker of sorts. To ready herself for such a job, she were raised in a very elegant and uptight manner. Becoming a maid were an honorable service to take up in her eyes. She had spent the last two years of her life working for many people, suiting their needs and fulfilling the expectation that an Izayoi were of highest servant class. Now the age of an adult, she would gain her first real job. This was nothing over the course of weeks or months. She could spend any number of years working for these clients.

Far-off from most settlement, there lay a large mansion. There were stories about it, but apparently there lived the Scarlet family. The Scarlets were very powerful, the heads of the mansion were known for being manipulative and deceiving. They held power over many small businesses. To be given an offer by the Scarlets could mean either fortune or failure. A year ago, news spread that the Mistress and Master of the mansion were murdered on a business trip. Only their two children, a pair or sisters, now live there. And because of this incident, no one dares come near the mansion and rumor that the murdered couple will exact revenge upon whoever does. Of all of the places, this is where Sakuya Izayoi would be called to serve. The maid in question were driven a long ways to the mansion, by a fellow caretaker. The caretaker reiterated that the two sisters had many serve them before.

"Were they killed or something?" Sakuya wondered. The story behind the mansion was already gruesome enough, she wouldn't be surprised.

"No. They simply weren't accepted. The sisters are picky, it seems."

"Ah. I hope I am able to keep my job then. Losing my very first job so quickly would ruin the family name..."

"Well, you are an Izayoi. I expect much from you."

"...thank you." When they finished their conversation, the car sat at the gate of a long driveway, right in front of the mansion in question. Sakuya remembered someone calling it the Scarlet Devil Mansion. She wondered whether or not any of this talk were true. The maid stepped out of the car with a small, neat case in hand and gave a small wave to the caretaker, prompting them to drive away. Turning around, she found that right at the gate stood a tall woman. She wore a green jacket and shirt, bore a few scars, and had a big smile. Her long hair were such a vibrant orange that it was hard to believe it was real. But then again, Sakuya always had sliver hair herself.

"Evening, miss!" The woman calls. "A caretaker for the two young mistresses?"

"Yes ma'am. May I ask of yourself?"

"Oh, I'm Meiling. My job is to escort the young mistresses places outside the mansion and keep them out of harm's way. Protect them, you know? But I also manage the gate around here too. Your name?"

"Sakuya Izayoi."

"An Izayoi? Huh... well, it's nice to meet you!"

"You as well."

"I better not waste time though, the Young Mistress'll get mad. Here, I'll let you through." The maid expected Meiling to push a button or something of the sort, but the woman simply walked over and grabbed the iron gate, pushing it open herself. Sakuya watched with amazement as the large gate creaked in protest. It looked much too heavy. Once there were enough room, she entered and thanked Meiling, before hurrying to the front of the mansion. When she arrived, right outside of the front door stood a girl. Sakuya walked closer to get a better look.

"The new maid, are you?" The girl in question had a gruff voice and a bit of a glare. She was wearing a white blouse with a red brooch and ribbon, along with a pink knee-high skirt and red flats. This girl had an odd hair color as well, which were sky-blue. She looked Sakuya over once and sighed.

"Yes, Young Mistress," Sakuya said, bowing deeply. The girl raised an eyebrow at her behavior.

"Just call me Remilia." She turned around and motioned for Sakuya to follow her into the mansion. The inside were incredibly vast, lined with with staircases, passages, and paintings. As for the Scarlet name, the whole mansion were decorated the color red. Sakuya wondered to herself how she would not get lost so quickly. But before they could get far, suddenly Remilia paused and turned around. She glanced about a bit, for the first time showing an emotion besides anger. "Look, I have a proposition for you."

"Yes Mistress?"

"I-it's Remilia. Anyway... all other maids have failed to do this. I will accept you only if you can feed my younger sister."

"Pardon? As in... hand-feed her?"

"No, not that! I mean, if you can prepare a meal she will actually like and eat on her own. My poor sister has been starving herself since we lost Mother and Father. The only reason she hasn't starved herself to death is because I force her to eat everyday! It's difficult, my meals are unlike Mother's. She does not want to accept them... or anyone else's for that matter. If you could please her, I will allow you to stay here. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Miss Remilia."

"Good. Now please, do your best. At this rate, this cycle of rejection won't end... I do not want that."

"I understand. I will put utmost effort into this."

"Okay. Now, I need to introduce you. Follow me." Sakuya nodded and did so. As they went down the hall, she thought about what Remilia had told her. It was odd that the younger sister would just choose not to eat anything because of her parent's death. For some reason, she didn't think the death of their parent's would have such a large impact. This habitual assumption was admittedly due to their wealth. But regardless Sakuya could not risk failing, so as they went along she thought of ways she could please the girl. Maybe she would discover them once she got there. They soon arrived, and Remilia opened a door to reveal a large but quite empty room. This were besides a small bookshelf, a container next to it, and a table with a few chairs. The supposed younger sister had chosen to sit on a rug in the middle of the room in lieu of the table. All around her were scattered papers and school supplies. When she spotted Remilia, the girl stood up and trotted over in curiosity. "Flandre, I've brought the new maid."

"H-hello," the girl murmurs. Sakuya saw she did look at least two years younger, with natural blonde hair and a part of it tucked into a side ponytail. The girl wore a white button-up, which were tucked into long red shorts and wore a pair of Mary Janes. And of course, most noticeable of all were the girl's scrawny figure. The rejection of food were visibly taking it's toll. "What's your name?" she asks shyly.

"Sakuya Izayoi, Young Mistress." Flandre's gaze faltered if only for a second at the sound of 'Young Mistress'. It seemed the two didn't like the title very much.

"I've heard of that name... Izayoi."

"Yes, we heard it from all of those other maids," Remilia reminded her.

"...excuse me, but may I ask what you would like for me to refer to you as?" Sakuya finally asked.

"Just Remilia. I'm sure Flandre is fine with her name too." The blonde girl nodded in agreement.

"I fear I am not able to drop all formality, as I am your maid. Might I at least call you 'Miss'?"

"Mmm, fine. Whatever keeps you happy."

"Thank you, Miss Remilia."

"Yeah, yeah."

"What do you require of me currently?"

"...I don't know, go help Flan with her homework or something," Remilia murmured, suddenly turning on her heel and leaving. "I don't need much, I will be in my room." As the two watched Remilia leave, Sakuya turned back to Flandre.

"You need assistance, Miss Flandre?" The girl nodded vigorously and ran over to the rug, picking up her things to pile them all onto the one table in the room. After sorting through the mess of papers, she found a workbook and began flipping through it for a certain page. Once found, she showed it to Sakuya and pointed to the first problem.

"...it's weird."

"Is it now? I'll take a look at it then." Sakuya read it over and could only assume that it were pre-algebra.

"I-I don't know what I'm supposed to do," Flandre explained.

"You need to solve for X, correct?" Flandre nodded. "Then here we have two fractions with all of the integers filled in, except for the denominator of this one, which is X. So wouldn't cross-multiplying be the answer to your problem?"

"Oh... I guess so." Flandre took hold of the workbook and finished the problem. "Um, cross-multiplying was what we did for the last chapter... so I thought I couldn't use it again."

"As long as you reach your answer, math allows you to use any technique." Sakuya remembered it well from the year she took geometry, in which possibilities were virtually endless.

"I didn't know that," she murmured shyly. "The X is usually on the top too..." Sakuya nodded and the girl continued her work, seeming to not need anymore help. The maid grew a bit nervous, because in most situations she had a higher authority to command her every step. In this case these two girls were her higher authority, but they didn't seem to be as commanding as she thought. She expected the children of the rumored devils to be harsh, cruel, and controlling like their parents, but maybe the town was wrong about the Scarlets after all. "Um... you seem like a nice maid."

"Why thank you, Miss Flandre."

"S-sis doesn't like maids... caretaker people... I hope she likes you."

"I hope so as well." The girl paused, before turning another page in her workbook and finishing a few more problems.

"Are you going to make dinner?"

"Yes, I will. Do you have any suggestions? I will prepare anything you like."

"Um, I'm not sure... but I like pickled carrots."

"Then so be it, I'll make sure to add that to the meal." Flandre looked her and brightened up, as if Sakuya had suddenly told the girl she were going to take her to a candy shop.

"T-thank you...!"

"You're welcome, Miss Flandre."

Later on, Sakuya were walking about the mansion. She needed to find where the kitchen was. Luckily she managed to retrace her steps, back to the spot where she thought the kitchen was when Remilia was leading her around the mansion. When she entered, Remilia were standing there as if she had been patiently awaiting her.

"Hello, Miss Remilia."

"Hey. Did Flandre tell you what she wanted for dinner?"

"She mentioned pickled carrots."

"Ah, I see. Well then, good luck."

"Have you any advice to make this to Miss Flandre's liking?"

"Mmm, not really. I didn't like to cook when Mother was alive, see. I'm afraid I don't know how she did it..." Remilia paused and sighed shakily before turning to leave. Sakuya was left there to contemplate how she would make this meal to the best of her ability. All she could do was try.

"Is dinner ready?" Remilia would ask after a while, entering the kitchen with her little sister not too far behind.

"Yes, it shall be out in a second."

"Good. You know where the dining room is." She quickly left and Flandre followed once more. Sakuya, a bit anxious to keep her job, quickly finished preparations and placed the meals on a cart Remilia instructed her to use. She entered the dining room and the two sisters sat next to each other on the right side of a long table. Sakuya placed down their meal promptly and they thanked her. Now the maid was left to stand post at the door and watch, just in case the two needed anything. Her own meal would have to wait until much later, when she was done with any and all tasks required of her.

She saw as Flandre stared at her food blankly. Remilia were about to say something, but paused when she saw her sister pick up a fork and poke one of the pickled carrots. The girl brought carrot up to eye-level and studied it, before taking a bite of it. She blinked quite a bit as she processed what she had just eaten, and Sakuya spotted hints of a smile. But Flandre put the carrot back down and placed her hands in her lap. Remilia sighed softly and urged her sister to continue eating. Meanwhile, Sakuya could hardly focus. She had failed. Completely and utterly. All she took was one bite. Nothing more. Sakuya didn't understand, what did this girl want? How could she have yet to taste what she desires after going through so many maids? And why did Sakuya also result as one of the ones who failed? Of all of the assignments she could receive, her first just had to be this one...

"Hey, you." Dinner had long ended and Flandre had returned to her room. Remilia stood in front of Sakuya, hands on her hips.

"I am very sorry I couldn't meet your expectations. I understand I'll be taking my leave—"

"No, wait a minute. Honestly, I didn't expect you to succeed, and you didn't. But this time, Flan actually made an attempt to even try her food. That's... never exactly happened before. You did something, but it wasn't enough. I don't know if this would have any effect on her tomorrow as well, so I've decided. I will give you one more chance. If the same happens, you will end up like the rest of those maids. Any improvements, and I'll allow you to stay as long as my little sister gets better. Understand?" Another chance? How was this possible? Sakuya were so overjoyed in her mind she could hardly reply.

"Yes, I understand. Thank you greatly."

"I haven't done anything. You have. So keep it up, alright?"

"Yes, Miss Remilia." Remilia looked at her once more before turning and leaving quickly. Sakuya paused for a minute or two. The maid certainly could call Remilia one of the most interesting clients she had yet to serve. The girl were a bit hostile, yet she showed that she truly did care on occasion. Whenever she would leave a room it were at a very fast pace, as if she didn't want to be followed. It was hard to read her mind or understand her by looks. And her gaze were always a bit discomforting, as if she knew your every move. Sakuya didn't know how to describe it.

As most caretakers, Sakuya was required to be there all of the time. Remilia introduced her to a guest room and said she could stay there for the night. So in the morning, Sakuya woke an extra hour early. She didn't know the schedules of the girls, so she got dressed and prepared breakfast. As she were finishing it, once again Remilia appeared with Flandre. The maid wondered how she knew exactly when the meals were almost done.

"Good Morning, Miss Remilia and Miss Flandre."

"Good Morning to you too," Remilia greeted as she suppressed a yawn.

"M-morning..." Flandre squeaked, just barely remembering to reply. Both looked very tired, even if they were fully dressed and ready.

"I'm afraid I don't know your waking schedule, so I hope I prepared breakfast on time."

"Yeah, it's fine. A little early, even. A bus takes us to school at 7:45," Remilia explained. "Don't you have school as well?"

"Yes. I leave at 8:00 and will return around 4:10."

"Huh. Alright, well we'll be in the dining room." The pair of sisters left and Sakuya went on to deliver their breakfast. They finished quickly and got ready to leave. Sakuya saw them off and then hurried to get her own things ready. She were lucky she had all of her homework done in advance, as she barely made the stretch to school on time. The mansion really were quite isolated. But the day went on as normal as she trudged through each class, really only focusing on what to do when she returned to the mansion. When lunch came around her friends crowded around the table, interested with what happened the first day of her job. They heard all about the Scarlets, and couldn't believe that the two sisters weren't vile little girls that worked Sakuya to death. They did a double-take when Sakuya even admitted she found the two a nice pair. One friend joked that they may have payed Sakuya extra to lie about it, but that rewarded her a gentle welt on the forehead and the girl were quick to apologize. Hearing people talk about Remilia and Flandre that way seemed to bother Sakuya more than she thought it would. That wasn't deserved, they were nothing like their parents.

When school did end, it was much quicker returning home. Sakuya greeted Meiling as she made her way down the mansion driveway, and when she entered the mansion it were deathly still. The maid hurried to her room and put away her things for school, before getting dressed in maid attire and walking about the mansion. She paused at the front of the mansion, where all of the stairs and passageways began. She were were about to move on, but she heard slow footsteps and Flandre emerged from a hallway.

"Good Afternoon, Miss Flandre."

"Um... good afternoon."

"May I ask where Miss Remilia is?"

"Sis stays after school this day... every week..."

"Ah, do I need to go retrieve her when she is ready to return?" Flandre shook her head vigorously.

"Sis gets home by herself."

"I see." Flandre did not leave, maybe even nearing a little closer to Sakuya. "Is there anything you need?"

"...I don't know," she murmured, truly perplexed for a moment's time. Sakuya could say that Flandre was a bit difficult to make conversation with. As a maid, she need not do that anyways, but the girl looked like she were longing for company and had a hard time conveying that.

"Have you finished your homework?"

"The teacher let us do it in class. I cross-multiplied this time."

"That is good very good to hear."

"C-can you play with me? I'm kinda bored, I like games though."

"I can, if that is what you wish. What game would you like to play?"

"...it's this way." Flandre turned around and began to walk down the passageway, the same one Remilia took when they first met. Sakuya followed, assuming it was a board game of some sort. They arrived in the same room Flandre does her homework in, and the blonde girl reached inside of the container that lay next to the bookshelf. She produced a tin box, with designs of certain monster on it. Sakuya knew that it was an extremely popular game for children, it often appeared on commercials. Inside of the tin box were smaller boxes, that looked like decks of cards. She handed Sakuya one. "Pokemon," she said. "I like this game."

And so Flandre was brief but told the maid how to play. There were many more rules than the girl mentioned, but she really wanted to play so didn't spend time on them. The deck of cards Sakuya had consisted of many vastly different monsters, or Pokemon, as Flandre called it. Flandre's deck had a few ultra-powerful legendary Pokemon, and many pink fairy-type cards. She seemed to enjoy those most. As they went on, Sakuya could not believe she were entertaining the child of a very prestigious family with a deck of cards that the girl found cute. But that was simply the way things worked. The two kept at it until they heard the door open. It seemed Remilia had returned home.

"Good evening, Miss Remilia."

"Good evening. Hey Flan." Remilia walked over and studied the scene. "You pulled Sakuya into another one of your card games?" Flandre nodded proudly and Remilia smiled, if only a faint one. "You're winning I assume?" Flandre paused and shrugged.

"I just like the Pokemon, sis. They're cute." Flandre further proved this by handing Remilia a card that read 'Sylveon' and pictured a pink and white fox-like creature adorned with ribbons.

"...that's true."

"You should keep it for a while, it's cute."

"If you insist, I might as well. But anyways, I do have homework. If you need me I'll be in my room." Remilia disappeared once again and the two looked back to their game. Sakuya had only one card left, and she had a feeling the rules should have drawn the line long ago. Her whole entire sixty-card deck was shoveled into the discard pile, besides one lone Fennekin, who was barely surviving on the battlefield. It was no wonder this battle took so long, the rules were out of the window long ago. Flandre dealt the final blow and smiled softly.

"You have me beaten, Miss Flandre. You're very good at this."

"Thanks!" Sakuya tidied up the mess of cards and put them back in their box, and Flandre retrieved it before the maid could put it away herself. When Sakuya looked ready to take her leave, Flandre stared her down with a look of curiosity. "Are you going to make dinner?"

"Yes, that was the plan."

"Can I ask you something?" Sakuya nodded and Flandre trotted over, motioning for her to bend down so the girl could whisper in her ear. The maid's eyes widened at the request made, but she nodded and promised her she would carry it out. "Thank you!" Flandre waved as Sakuya left the room and trailed the halls, keeping in mind exactly what Flandre wanted.

Dinner came about right on time, and as usual Remilia came to check on Sakuya before heading to the dining hall. When Sakuya entered with the food, Remilia sat on the right just as times before, but Flandre sat across from her at the table. You could tell Remilia was just as perplexed as Sakuya were. The maid delivered the food to the both of them and took post at the door, watching them begin their meal. Remilia watched her sister first and foremost, as once again she picked up a utensil. Flandre stared at the meal unusually hard and even closed her eyes for a minute, but Remilia did not want yet to interrupt her. Finally she stuck her spoon into the pile of buttered corn on the plate, and slowly yet surely ate what she had in the spoon. An impressed smile snuck onto Remilia's face, but this was just like yesterday. She ate one thing. Anxiety hung in the air as the girl finished the corn. Sakuya was hoping oh-so dearly that Flandre would take at least another bite. All she needed was one more.

Flandre paused, but she hadn't finished. She took another spoon of it. Remilia broke into an even bigger smile, as she watched her sister actually enjoy a meal right before her very eyes. For a moment hope fleeted when she assumed maybe it would only be one more bite than yesterday, but she were quite wrong. Flandre looked to have no intention of rejecting her food this time. But Remilia wondered why, what could this maid have done this time that no one else could?

"It's good..." Flandre announces, stealing away Remilia's attention.

"I... I'm glad. You'll be able to finish it on your own then?" Her sister nodded vigorously and the two enjoyed their meal together. Sakuya had only known these sisters for two days, but she couldn't help but feel happy for them.

"Hey, hey Sakuya," she would hear Remilia call. It was long after dinner had ended and Sakuya thought Remilia retired to her room.

"Yes, Miss Remilia?"

"Um... thank you. Flan sat on the other side of the table and finished her whole entire meal today. You must have done something, right?"

"I'm not sure. I simply entertained her today, and she asked me to prepare the exact meal I did."

"Ah. I hope this means she'll continue to eat on her own. But I'm very happy. You aren't half-bad for a maid, you know that?"

"Thank you, Miss Remilia."

"...you take anything as a compliment, huh? Well, I'm off to my room. Have a good night. And... consider the mansion your new home, okay?" Sakuya's eyes widened at the last remark, but Remilia had long turned on her heel and left. As the maid stood there, the girl's last sentence hung in the air. That must have been the nicest thing Remilia had yet to say to her. It felt unusually comforting. But what was Sakuya thinking? She had work to get back to! This were only the second day, and she still had much to do before she could rest for the night.


End file.
